Types of Owners / Businessmen vs Philanthropists.

[Inside_Man]

Okay, I should reply to Chillz in the other thread, but I'm starting a new one cuz I think it's a different and very important topic.

Chillzatl wrote;

"You can say that the owners are "fans" all you want. But the truth is this. THey are business men. Once they start losing millions per year, which they will, they are going to act like business men and start cutting expenses. THAT is when we'll see just how big of "fans" the new owners are. Will they have what it takes to suck up the losses and keep pouring money into the team hoping they can finally turn a profit?"

I have to disagree with you here. There are different types of rich businessmen. There are some who got rich by being cheap SOBs and they'll always be cheap SOBs and when they buy a sports franchise they're still cheap SOBs. These guys have a heart attack writing checks. I think we all sensed that McDavid might have been this kinda guy.

There are also rich businessmen who understand that you do things to make your city a better place. Before discussing the new owners, compare Ted Turner to Blank & Marcus of Home Depot Fame. Turner was, imho, one of the worst citizens Atlanta ever had. He only spent money on things where he could collect a piece of the gate. Now along come Blank and Marcus and after they retire they're putting up a children's museum, aquarium and a symphony hall!! They understand that they can't take their money with them when they die. They made it, and now they're spending it to make the ATL a better place.

They're also making Ted look like the cheap redneck he is. Yeah, I know he's given big bucks to a lot of causes, but he never stepped up for the city where so many of his employees live unless there was a buck in it for Ted. Even Old Rankin Smith understood the basics, he put up a big chunk of the money for the Fernbank museum.

Now we have our new owners, some of whom are local, and some of whom have dreamed of owning an NBA team for 20 years. Let's examine 2 quotes.

Belkin "we have the financial resources to do what’s necessary to create a championship team. We will do what’s required."

Another owner remarked that they'd "made their fortunes and are philanthropists now." That statement goes to the heart of the issue. A good sports team is an asset for the city and community, just like a museum or aquarium. Good sports teams make a city a better place to live. As owner/philanthropists they will be writing more checks then they cash. As long as they're not cheap SOBs, it will work.

None of this is to say they won't negotiate hard, nor spend their money wisely, (no contracts such as CC's and Hendu's. )But a good owner knows it's not about the money at this level, and these guys apparantly have businesses making plenty of dough so they don't need to turn a profit on the Hawks gate to pay the mortgage.

[chickenstanly]

I believe some owners do so for the fun of it.

Sometimes I don't believe some of you grasp

the difference in the net worth of the various

owners.

For example, Paul Allen -vs- Mark Cuban. There

is no comparison here. Cuban may be "involved"

in his team and spend a lot of money, but in

no way is his wealth comparable to Allen's.

Neither is Arthus Blank's. In fact, you could

put the two together and multiply times 10

and not have as much as Allen.

Just keep this in mind. Jerry Buss, OTOH, is

forced to be a businessman because his worth

is not great. Neither is the guy in Salt Lake.

Corporations run teams like businesses. This

is because those in charge are high-priced

working stiffs whose jobs are on the line.

Bottom line is that all owners are NOT

equal and it's just not a case of one

being more "willing" to do things than

another. Some have MUCH more than

others.

Think of the difference in pay between

Shaq and Ira. That's aproximately the gap

between Allen and Cuban.

[Inside_Man]

according to Forbes,

Allen is worth 21 billion vs Cuban's 1.3 billion.

[Boondocks]

21 billion, wow

How much is Bill Gates worth then?

[Inside_Man]

forty-something billion

[Diesel]

In the research, it was easily noted who has big money and who doesn't.

McDavid was small potatoes. That is why I forecasted that he would not be an owner like Cuban. He didn't have the money. Compared to Cuban, he is broke. That's why Gearon said... "We have already made our fortunes." That means that they were not in this venture to make money. However, by McDavid having to finance the deal, he was in the venture to make money....Otherwise, the repo man would come and take all these things away.

McDavid asking AOL to take the collateral debt off the Hawks was similar to him asking them to cosign his deal. AOL had to get out of his deal. He didn't have much.

AND

I look at Gates- 43 Billion. Allen = 21 Billion. Even Cuban and Turner 1.1, 1.3 Billion.

These guys need to be philanthropist otherwise TAXES will eat them ALIVE.

Same as with our group...

Belkin, Gearon, Gearon, and Co. need to be investors because:

1. They love it.

2. They need to spend the money.

3. It makes them look good to their city.

I truly believe that Gearon, Gearon Jr, and Belkin are all big time fans.... That means that they will make smart and good decisions.